5K Fun Run-approx.) 477 finishers
10K- 130 finishers
10K- 130 finishers
It would probably have been difficult for the organizers of the first Ed Root 10K in 1983 to imagine the popularity and success that this race would achieve. Ed, a member of the family that has been synonymous with commercial and cultural growth throughout the Daytona Beach area, was a well-known personality and talented runner in his own right. It is quite possible, however, that less than a handful of the 600 runners in this race ever met him. Nevertheless, when row after countless row of runners lined up on Pine Street in New Smyrna Beach for the start of the 24th Annual Ed Root, it was a lasting tribute to the man behind the race.
Among the waves of runners that surged forward with the sound of Jacob Smith’s air horn were, quite literally, hundreds of “Girls on the Run.” As Dr. Hollie Newman, Asst. Principal of Sweetwater Elementary School in Port Orange explained, “These girls come from elementary schools throughout Volusia County. The program, which follows a Girls on the Run curriculum, began in the first week of school and they’ve met twice a week ever since. We start each meeting with a character and team building activity. We also focus on self-awareness. For this race, which is the culminating activity, each school is allowed to enter twelve girls.”
Andrea McGray, who teaches at the school, added “We start with short distances, but at the end we are up to about three miles.”
Also present were the approximately 50 sixth to eighth graders from the New Smyrna Beach Middle School that comprised their Sting Rays Running Club. Wearing bright red tee shirts emblazoned with a distinctive sting ray logo, their runners and coaches added to the field that virtually flooded the narrow streets of NSB.
“Our coach is Todd Johnson,” said Samantha, a member of the team. “He’s a faculty member at the school. We train two days a week, and started out by running sprints on the track way back in August. Now we’re up to three miles a day, which we sometimes do off campus.”
There was only enough room on the starting line for approximately ten runners to position themselves shoulder-to-shoulder, and the race began with a frenetic pace set by eventual third place finisher Michael Stone of NSB.
“I went out at 5:43, which is what I wanted to do,” explained Brian Heisler. A college junior and second best runner on this past season’s Stetson Cross Country team, he ran a smart, patient race that turned out well for him. “The guy who finished third (Stone) had about 15 seconds on me, and Joe (Matuszczak, an alumni of Stetson, who finished up his cross country career there before Heisler arrived) was one second behind me.”
However, Matuszczak caught Heisler.
“After that, I was in third place almost the whole race. I watched Joe as he caught Michael at 3 ½. I caught Michael at 4 ½., and Joe at about 5 ¼. We ran together for a quarter of a mile, pushing each other. Finally, he dropped off a step or so at 5 ½. I looked at my watch and saw that we had about a half mile to go, so I took off.”
The result was Heisler first (36:19), Matuszczak second (36:39) and Stone third (37:01). As it turned out, all three won a different age group, so all were the recipients of the distinctive porcelain awards hand-painted by Yolanda Pelz. Behind them, 42 year old John Dodd (38:32) was the master’s champion (38:32), while 43 year old Todd Graff (38:41) won the 40-44 age group. Andrew Epifanio, running his first 10K as a 15 year old, set a PR by seven seconds (39:13) to win the high school (14-18) division. 64 year old Silky Sullivan, running as smooth as his name implies, came all the way from Tampa to post a 46:46 (60-64) age group victory.
The women’s race was just as exciting, if not more so, than the men’s.
“Kathy (Hoover, who finished exactly a minute behind her) ran out real hard and I caught her at around two miles, right before the boardwalk,” said the eventual overall winner, and ninth place overall finisher, Colleen Nicoulin of Port Orange. “I went through the first mile in 6:15 and ran the second in 6:18. Then I slowed down. It was a little humid.”
The 33 year old transportation planner, who has been a runner since she was nine, also alluded to another deterrent to fast times.
“When we caught up to the 5K runners, you kind had to weave your way through them.”
A sizable number of the 5K runner/walkers who actually finished in over an hour, and therefore became interspersed with the faster-moving 10Kers, made it difficult for the 10Kers to run all-out and impossible to run tangents. Add to that the little bit of red tide floating in the wind, which left a few people’s throats raw, and you have to compliment everyone on their 10K times.
You certainly won’t hear Nicoulin complaining. And her 40:20 time was a strong one.
“This is actually one of my favorite races because of the surface changes (road-to-boardwalk-back to road). I like the boardwalk. I usually come down here to run on Saturdays, so I know where I am on the course.”
(Study the top ten women and check out the places/times of the women in places 22 through 25.)
TOP 10
Males Time Females Time
1)Brian Heisler 36:19 9)Colleen Nicoulin 40:20
2)Joe Matuszczak 36:39 12)Kathy Hoover 41:20
3)Michael Stone 37:01 15)Suzanne O’Mally 43:06
4)John Dodd 38:32 18)Dana Gross-Rhode 44:38
5)Todd Graff 38:41 22)Birgit Smith 45:59
6)Andrew Epifanio 39:13 23)Joy Borhwardt 46:02
7)Frank Kapr 39:38 24)Maryann Rau 46:06
8)Jimmy Wyatt 40:18 25)April Darrow 46:26
10)Paul Rice 40:44 39)Annie Albrecht 49:04
11)Paul Holyko 41:06 42)Arlene Olivarez 49:18
Males Time Females Time
1)Brian Heisler 36:19 9)Colleen Nicoulin 40:20
2)Joe Matuszczak 36:39 12)Kathy Hoover 41:20
3)Michael Stone 37:01 15)Suzanne O’Mally 43:06
4)John Dodd 38:32 18)Dana Gross-Rhode 44:38
5)Todd Graff 38:41 22)Birgit Smith 45:59
6)Andrew Epifanio 39:13 23)Joy Borhwardt 46:02
7)Frank Kapr 39:38 24)Maryann Rau 46:06
8)Jimmy Wyatt 40:18 25)April Darrow 46:26
10)Paul Rice 40:44 39)Annie Albrecht 49:04
11)Paul Holyko 41:06 42)Arlene Olivarez 49:18